Minecraft: The Adventures of Steve
by PixelKnux
Summary: This is the typical Minecraft story. But have you ever considered it from the player's perspective? This is the story of Steve, the Minecraft man. Rated T for violence and suggestive language.
1. Chapter 1: Waking up

"..."

"..."

"..!"

Steve awoke with a sudden jolt, followed by a sharp pain in his head. "Oh my aching...wait, where am I?"

Steve stood up as if drunk, and surveyed his surroundings. He was in the middle of a dense forest of oak and birch trees. In the distance, a pig snorted with contentment and a chicken cooed. Steve began to walk deeper into the forest. His stomach groaned.

"Oh man...I'm really hungry!" He began searching for the nearest sign of food. A cow came up to him and mooed, as if defiant of Steve. Steve immediately punched the cow in the face, hoping to knock it to the ground. He was sorely mistaken. The cow immediately ran off into the woods.

"Dang, I really wanted that cow!" Steve uttered. Upon further inspection of a nearby tree, he found a ripe, shiny maroon apple. He walked over and hit the tree and the apple toppled out of it. He ravenously grabbed the apple and gobbled it up, not wasting any time to taste it.

"Ohhh...that really hit the spot." Steve looked up and saw that it was high noon. "Oh no! I've only got about five minutes 'til nightfall! I need to make a shelter."

Steve turned to the tree out of which he picked the apple. He then began punching the bark on the tree until he had about five or six logs. He took five of the logs and quickly made them into planks. After about 4 minutes, the planks were quickly placed, along with some makeshift dirt, to form a lackluster shack with a wooden door.


	2. Chapter 2: Surviving the First Night

As night fell, the monsters emerged from their hiding places.

The zombies moaned and lazed about as Steve quivered in his corner, frightened to death. One of them caught sight of Steve and quickly began pummeling on the door. Having no other place to turn to, Steve used his bare hands to move the earth beneath him in order to hide himself from the terrifying zombie. He quickly placed a block of dirt above him. He listened intently as the zombie busted down the door and stormed in, then as the zombie lost interest and lazed out of the shack. Steve removed the dirt from above him and was met with a sunbeam from the coming dawn. The monsters quickly retreated back to their holes, and Steve climbed out of his hole. He breathed a heavy sigh of relief.


	3. Chapter 3: The Fated Meeting

Steve walked out into the sun and began to collect more wood.

"Ouch...this is starting to suck. I really need to get an axe." He took his collected wood and, with some simple strokes, turned it into a crafting table. He then crafted a makeshift wooden axe. "That's much better. I might need to make a pickaxe too, though", so he fashioned a wooden pickaxe with what wood he had left. He then started walking through the forest whistling a jaunty tune.

He found a deposit of stone and coal. "Jackpot!" He started picking away at the stone and coal for a solid portion of the day, his pickaxe getting more and more cracked with every block he mined. Steve collected as much as he could until his wooden pickaxe finally shattered into pieces.

"Dang." he said in anger, and turned around to begin walking back to his shack. He looked at the sun setting over the horizon and began sprinting towards his house. He looked around and began to realize that he was unfamiliar with his surroundings. He started sprinting even deeper into the forest, not realizing that his home was in the opposite direction.

As night fell, he began hearing ominous sounds of zombies and spiders. He ran all the way until he came to a plain, where he unfortunately locked gaze with a tall, black figure with glowing violet eyes that had no soul in them. The figure opened its wide jaw and stared back at Steve, waiting for him to make a move. Steve slowly started to back away, his breathing getting heavier and heavier by the second. The figure suddenly disappeared out of thin air. Steve looked around wildly for the figure, but he was nowhere to be seen. He started to back away and was met with a grass block to the back of his head. He turned around just as the purple-eyed figure vanished again and reappeared behind him to strike him with another blow to the head.

It was, at this precise moment, that he regretted not crafting some kind of weapon before heading out. He decided that there was no other choice but to dig his way down again into the ground and place a block above him. The purple-eyed figure moaned and teleported away from the scene. Steve took out his pack and realized that he still had two blocks of wooden planks. He took his planks and fashioned them into torches with the coal he had mined. Deciding to play it safe, he dug his way through the ground two blocks at a time in the direction he had come from. When he began to hear the monsters above sizzling and retreating to their hideaways, he popped his head out of the earth, turned around, and saw his shack right in front of him.


	4. Chapter 4: Kicking Ass and Taking Names

A few days later, Steve had cut down a fair portion of the forested area around him. The run down shack which had been the object of his terror had been upgraded into a cozy house of cobblestone and a wooden roof, complete with a fireplace. He still had an extreme problem with the monsters every night, considering the fact that he still hadn't found one sheep or one block of iron ore to even try to make a bed. Nevertheless, he still did all he could in order to try and keep the monsters away. That particular day, Steve decided that it was time to take the fight to them. He found a few cows out in the forest and beat them to death. Ripping the hides from the slaughtered cows, he took them back and made a rudimentary set of leather armor. He then took some of the cobblestone he had lying around and fashioned from it, a sword.

"I shall dub thee...Copernicus."

As night fell, the monsters crawled out of the woodwork to once again wreak havoc upon the land. Only this time, Steve was prepared to defend his little square of property. As he took his fighting stance, a skeleton riding a spider jumped from off of the roof and fired an arrow at Steve. Steve quickly took Copernicus and sliced clean through the bones of the skeleton, rotated his blade and drove it straight through the spider. He noticed that there were a couple of arrows lying on the ground, and as Steve bent over to pick them up, he was smacked square on the bum by a zombie. He did an awesome 180 maneuver and swung his blade through the air, missing the zombie completely. As the zombie continued to smack him back and forth, he regained his wits and chopped the undead's head clean off. Upon further inspection of the zombie, he noticed some deteriorating flesh inside of it.

"Ugh," Steve thought to himself.

As Steve ran through his woods, he must have killed about twenty or thirty different enemies, collecting treasures from each of them. He was feeling pretty badass, right up until he met eyes with the same figure from a week before. He stopped and stared at it for a good five minutes, waiting for him to move.

"..." 10 minutes

"..." 20 minutes

"..." 35 minutes

At that point the sun was high in the sky, but the purple-eyed figure still did not move an inch. Steve was steadfast in his gaze, but he was getting bored. He then remembered that he had obtained a bow from one of the skeletons, along with about 10 arrows. He slowly took out the bow, and readied an arrow on it. The instant the bowstring left his hand, the purple-eyed figure vanished. Steve quickly drew out Copernicus, ready to turn around and slash his opponent. He turned around just long enough to hear the dreaded...

"SSSssss..."

Time seemed to move slower in that one instant, the one instant that every player fears. The eminent explosion of the dreaded creeper.

"OHHHH SHIIII-"

BOOM!

The force of the exploding creeper knocked Steve back a few paces, but he stumbled to his feet and quickly surveyed his surroundings. Seeing no more sign of the purple-eyed figure, he limped back home, feeling triumphant.


	5. Chapter 5: Time to Farm!

Steve laid out all his spoils from the night before in front of him. He had collected about 15 bones, what were now 9 arrows, 17 spider eyes, and 13 pieces of string. He made sure to steer clear of any rotting flesh.

As Steve looked outside, he remembered having chopped down all the trees in the surrounding area. He decided then that he was going to start to raise some livestock, so that he didn't have to continually search for apples. He took a bone and ground it up into bone meal, and he then went outside and began to survey the area for some seeds. Fortunately, he found some in a pile of tall grass just outside. Steve went inside and fashioned a wooden hoe out of some sticks and planks, and took it outside to till some dirt.

He soon had a stack of wheat in his hand, and was going to go out to lure some cows to the fences he had built off scene (what? I'm not gonna tell you everything!). He soon heard a cow in the distance moo. He recognized it as the cow he had punched the first day of his adventure. With the wheat in his hand, the cow got a whiff and immediately came up to Steve and tried to eat the wheat out of his hand.

He lured the cow to the fences, followed by another, then another. He then fed the wheat to one of the male cows and one of the female cows. After that, the scene became too graphic to try to describe in a fan fiction (4th wall breakage!). When it was said and done, Steve turned around and heard a tiny "moo" uttered from a baby cow.

"Awwwww...he's gonna be delicious."


	6. Chapter 6: Acquire Hardware

The next morning, Steve decided that it was time to find some more sustainable resources than stone and wood. He remembered to pack a crafting table, a spare furnace, and plenty of torches. He went outside and looked around the landscape; he didn't, however, see any kind of cave to be found. So, he simply shrugged and began to dig in a downward manner. It was about 10 or 20 blocks under the surface when he realized his mistake, and fell straight down into a cavern, barely surviving the fall. Thank goodness there were no monsters around to try and kill him. He took out a torch and plunked it into the ground. The large cavern was lit up to reveal a myriad of coal, iron, and gold. Big dollar signs filled Steve's head as he went directly for the gold. However, he took one swing at the ore and his pickaxe immediately shattered.

"Son of a-" Steve stopped himself mid sentence, remembering that he had brought a few spare resources. He quickly fashioned a stone pickaxe out of what he had dug out of the ground, and eventually pulled some of the iron ore out of the earth to put in his furnace. Within minutes, he had a new iron pickaxe and plenty of gold and iron ore. He picked up his furnace and his crafting table and went on his way, deeper into the cave.

Steve was walking through the cave, periodically plunking torches down, when he looked up and heard an arrow shoot right past his face. Dumbstruck, he looked back at the arrow and judged the trajectory of the arrow to be…right in front of him, where a skeleton had readied another arrow. Steve pulled a matrix-like maneuver and dodged the arrow that flew right over his face. He pulled out his bow and fired an arrow, which struck the skeleton right in the face and knocked him off of the ledge upon which he stood. Steve looked down…

…and saw a massive hole. He saw an array of zombies, skeletons, and creepers. Fortunately, none of them seemed too inclined to jump off of their respective ledges, and decided to leave Steve to his business. He stealthily made his way to the bottom of the huge pit and made his way over some lava. Steve found more iron ore, almost a stack's worth, and more gold ore. He turned a corner and found…

DIAMONDS! Three whole diamonds! "That would be enough to make a pickaxe!" Steve thought to himself. He readily mined out the diamonds and went on his way. He made his way back to the room of lava and began to place a block at a time underneath of him. He eventually made his way to the surface, and realized that it was nighttime. A creeper behind him came up and began to sizzle.

SSSSSSssssssSSSSS…

"Crap."


	7. Chapter 7: You are not alone

BOOM!  
Steve was knocked to his feet by the force of the explosion. He scrambled to get up, but already he was being aggressively attacked by three spiders. They bit Steve as if he was their last meal, and Steve was close to blacking out…  
Steve awoke the next day in a strange place. His head was throbbing, and his arms and legs felt as if they were on fire. He took a look around and saw that he didn't have any of his armor, or his sword, or anything! Steve tried to get up to search for his things, but his headache suggested otherwise. He heard the door to the strange building open, and in walked a tall man in white with his arms folded. Steve was frightened of this new person; he had assumed he was the only one around for miles. Steve backed into a corner.

"Shhh… it's alright my friend. You are safe here," The man softly said.

"Who…who are….who are y-" Steve's headache kept him from barely speaking.  
"I am a friend. My name is Dr. Testificate. The villagers brought you here after finding you out in the woods covered in spider bites." The doctor glanced over a chart and stated, "It's a good thing they brought you in when they did, or you surely would've died."

"Wh-where…where is my…"

"Don't worry, my good man. You have nothing to fear. All of your things are packed away inside that chest over there." The doctor pointed to a large chest in the corner of the room. Steve passed out on his pillow.  
Another villager, a woman, came in and saw Steve. "Ohmygoodness, did he wake up yet?" She said in a panic.  
"Yes, yes, Ms. Testificate, we just had a lovely conversation. He should be fine in a couple of hours, but for now, he needs his space."

"Oh, 'msosorrysir!" The woman scurried out of the room.

The doctor looked at Steve sleeping in his bed.  
"You have much to be thankful for, my friend. You are not alone."


	8. Chapter 8: The Mission

"And Notch said unto them 'I fear you not. Though your souls are filled with evil, I do not fear you. I bless thee, and demand the evil out!' And so it was, and so it came to be that the evil souls were lifted and became the first players. In Notch's name we pray, amen."  
A chorus of "amens" was heard from the various villagers. Steve stood up from his pew and walked up to the religious official leading the sermon.

"That was a lovely sermon you gave sir." Steve said.

"Thank you, friend. My name is Testbishopcate. I am the bishop around these parts, and lately, I've been having a bit of a problem."

"What kind of problem?"

"Well, our village has been having a problem. As you understand, our village is located in the middle of a desert."

"Yeah, I saw that. What exactly is the problem?"  
"You see," the bishop began to explain, "our resources are beginning to dwindle. We are running out of water in the well, and without the water, we can't grow our crops. We have very little left, and most of what we had has gone to treating your wounds and putting you back on your feet."  
Steve felt a rush of guilt inside his stomach. "I would be glad to help you in any way I can."

"Oh, thank you my friend. Go see Tesmithicate, and he can give you some armor, and a new sword."

Steve walked outside and looked around the village. The pathways were laid with gravel, and a large metal man walked around the corner with some childrificates. He looked around and saw a field of wheat, or rather, what should be wheat. The soil was dried up, and a shrub was the only thing that could grow in the soil. Another testificate looked out from their window and weakly smiled at Steve as he walked by. He got to a building with two furnaces on the outside, and knocked on the door. A rugged voice shouted at him.  
"WHADDAYA WANT?"

"Um…I was sent by the bishop? My name is Steve, and I was hoping to get some armor?"  
"WELL, YA CAME TO THE RIGHT PLACE. STEP INSIDE, AND I'LL SHOW YA WHAT I'VE GOT."

Steve opened the door and stepped inside to find a tall man with a dark black apron and 5 o' clock shadow staring at him.

"SINCE THE BISHOP SENT YA, I GUESS YUR DOIN SOM'N IMPORTANT, AIN'TCHA?"

"Uh…yeah. Sure. Do you have any armor for me?"

"OH BOY DO I! BEST ARMOR AROUND." He opened a chest and pulled out a sturdy chest plate of iron, along with boot, leggings, and a helmet. He then took a sword in a leather sheath and handed it to Steve. Steve took the sword in awe, and pulled it out of its sheath. The blade glimmered in the sunlight, and almost looked as if it was glowing.

"THAT DER IS THE DRAGON'S BANE. IT'S BEEN ENCHANTED TO NOT WEAR OUT AND STAYS SHARP. BE CAREFUL WITH IT."

"Thank you very much." He walked out and went back to the bishop.  
"Okay Mr. Bishop, how am I going to find more water for this village?"

"Well, we've sent some scouts out to isolate a natural spring, and I believe that they have found one. Take a look at this map."

Steve saw on the map that there was the village in the center, and a long trail leading off of the side.

"Wait a minute, why do you need to send me out to get this water, when you've had scouts go out to map this landscape?" Steve questioned.

The bishop's expression turned sour. "Well," he explained, "we sent some of our best men out there. Unfortunately, when they didn't return after a full month, we went out to search for them. All we found…" The bishop had a tear in his eye.

"It's okay, sir. You don't have to say any more."

"Thank you, friend. That story is always hard to recount for me. My only son was part of that search party. That's the reason I became the bishop"

"Well, I appreciate all that your people have done for me. I will make sure that your people do not suffer anymore."

"Thank you, my good friend. I hope you have safe travels, and may Notch bless you on your quest."

As the sun set in the sky, the villagers waved Steve goodbye, and Steve started to follow the map towards where it left off. As the sun set, he came to a field along the path to the spring.  
He locked gaze with the purple-eyed figure.


	9. Chapter 9: The Hole

This time it was different.

This time, all the hate and anger that welled up inside of Steve was focused into the grip of his new blade in his hand. This time, Steve was ready.

He looked away from the monster, and it vanished away. It reappeared behind Steve, and just as it did, Steve pulled his sword from its sheath and drove it straight into the heart of the purple-eyed figure. The figure let out a scream of agony, and then its eyes turned grey. Steve found a strange teal orb that the monster was holding. He put it in his pocket and went on his way.

After doing battle with few more monsters, the sun came up the next morning. Steve took a look at his map and realized that he was about halfway to the edge. He ferociously ran farther and farther until he came to the edge, and realized why the others hadn't been able to make it back. Steve looked down into the giant chasm in the earth which stood before him.

"They couldn't navigate this? Pfft" Steve said in defiance. He took out the orb he had received from the purple-eyed figure and tossed it over the ravine. He found himself immediately pulled over to the other side.

"OUCH! Huh…I didn't expect that to work. Cool." Steve started to continue, now in pursuit of the spring. That was when Steve realized the REAL reason no one had made it back. Steve fell victim to a tripwire trap, and was immediately tossed into a huge hole. Before he had a chance to look up, the sound of pistons was all he heard before darkness filled the hole. He pawed around for something to try to climb out of, and all he felt was bones.

"Oh my!" He exclaimed in shock. He took out a torch that he had brought with him, and plunked it into the side of the hole. His stomach turned at the gruesome sight which befell him as the hole was lit. Blood stains and rotting flesh were scattered about the hole, along with a myriad of bones and other things from adventurers past. He then observed a small notebook held in the grasp of one of the skeletons. He pried it free and began to read:

"Day XXX: We set out to search for more resources as we head East in search of water and food. Our morale is high, and we feel very confident.

Day XXY: It's been about a week now, and our supplies are starting to run thin. However, we are still hopeful and are eager to find the new resources to bring back. I can't wait to see my girlfriend again.

Day XYY: Things have been going strangely since we came into contact with a purple-eyed man in the middle of the night. Things that we had been keeping account of have mysteriously disappeared, and our squad leader s starting to suspect mutiny. I just want to leave.

Dear notch! We've been doped! I don't know if anyone will ever find this notebook, but if you do, do NOT cross paths with the purple-eyed man! He will deceive you! He has us all trapped down here, and death is emi-"

The charcoal led across the page as if to suggest that the book was torn out of his hands. As Steve finished reading, a piston clicked and revealed a long passageway. Steve looked through it with fear and gulped.


	10. Chapter 10: The Ender King

Steve slowly crept into the hallway. As he did, he heard a click and the wall behind him instantly shut, leaving Steve to stumble around in the darkness. Already mortified, he heard spiders crawling around in the tunnels above him. As Steve continued on, he tripped and fell face first into a spider web. As he gesticulated about, trying to get the webs off of him, he saw a light at the end of the tunnel.

Steve entered a large room made of sandstone, where two of the black, purple-eyed men stood guard to one on a throne in the middle. The one in the middle seemed different somehow-almost…regal. He spoke to the one in the middle in the bravest voice he could muster.

"Who…who are you?" Steve squeaked.

The man in the middle simply turned his head to his guard. The guard took out a golden helmet and placed it upon the middle man's head.

"So…you're a king?"

The man nodded slowly.

"So you're the one who sent those monsters after me!"

Once again, the man nodded.

"What have I ever done to you to make you want to attack me?"

The king turned his head to a map on the wall on the side of the room. A glowing purple circle surrounded a small dot of grey. Upon further inspection of the map, Steve noticed that it was where he had built his house.

"Wait a minute…" Steve thought for a minute, and then came to a realization. "So, you're attacking me because I am trying to survive?"

The king shook his head.

"So, what then? I don't understand!" Steve put his hand on his sheathed sword. The instant he did, the guards began to move in on him. However, the king let out a high pitched roar, and the guards backed away. Steve saw the king scold the guards, or at least that's what it looked like. As the guards walked out of the room through two separate piston doors, Steve heard a very deep voice in his head.

"I apologize for my guards. Their only concern is for my safety. However, they do not realize that I can take care of myself."

Steve seemed taken aback by the king. He sounded almost…nice.

"What on earth? Why did you send those people after me? You had me scared to death for my safety!"

"I know, and for this, I apologize," the king began to explain. "As soon as I became aware of your presence in this dimension, I immediately sent my guards to go and test your strength. However, they returned to me with no reports of your bravery or strength."

Steve recalled the first two encounters he had had with the purple-eyed men. "But I don't get it…I tried to kill the second one. He vanished!"

"Well, yes. We, the Endermen, believe that one who uses a bow rather than a sword is too weak to face us. Therefore, we do not waste our time with such low-lives. However, I did witness your encounter with the last Enderman you fought. You seemed determined, almost…animalistic."

Steve ignored that last comment and once again continued with all of his questions. "So… you saw me kill your last guard, and you put me in this hole?! I thought you were trying to test me!"

"Well, it is true that I witnessed you kill that Enderman. However, I did not send him. I have been having issues in my Enderman hierarchy. More specifically, a splinter cell."

"Well, that certainly seems like a problem, but I have no issues with you and your people, so kindly leave me alone!" Steve shouted. As he did, the king let out a bloodcurdling roar. Steve grimaced and covered his ears, unable to escape the high-pitched squeal until its end. He then looked up.

"Perhaps you didn't understand me, Steve," the king said with more force in his voice, "**I was not the one who sent that Enderman after you**. This splinter cell worships a terrible being…a being which exists only in the dimension of "The End". Before the splinter cell, only those of the Ender race could pass in and out of "The End". I ruled over them in this dimension, and my brother ruled over them in "The End". However, a terrible terrible monster appeared one day, and completely ruined the throne! Anxiously, my brother took on this monster, and…well, he never stood a chance. This is when the splinter cell began to form. The Endermen who worship this monster have been looking for a way to bring him into this dimension and wreak havoc upon my throne and my jurisdiction, just like my brother. They were close to finding it, when you appeared out of thin air. That is when the splinter cell began sending its own scouts to destroy you. That is also the reason why you fell into this hole. It was supposed to be a trap for you in order to finally destroy you."

"And…you…you saved me?" Steve inquired, somewhat confused.

"Yes, for after I witnessed you destroy that Enderman with such grace, I decided to bring you directly to me. I need your help Steve, and it truly humbles me to have to ask an outsider for this kind of assistance. For you see, a portal to "The End" has been opened by this splinter cell. They are close to bringing the monster to this dimension. So, I need you to find this portal and destroy the monster."

"Okaaaayyyy…" Steve said mockingly, "how am I supposed to accomplish this? Cause, you're kinda droppin a bomb on me here."

"The splinter cell," the king began to explain, "has developed what is known as the Eyes of Ender. My guards have reverse engineered them and found that they are made of our Ender Pearls and a rod from the flaming monster which is only found in HELL."

"Great…so, let me get this straight: you, an all powerful king with guards and resources at his disposal, are asking me, a mortal being which has been alive here for a matter of a couple weeks, to go and kill a monster which exists in a dimension that I can only access by going to hell to get _ingredients_ to even come close to finding it, then I have to destroy it all by myself?"

"Believe me, if there was any other way, even a more difficult one than this, I would choose that. I don't like putting people in harm's way, but I have no choice."

Steve took his time and pondered the consequences of what lay before him. After a long while, he reluctantly replied, "Okay…but I have one request of you first."

The king gleefully said, "I am in your debt for a thousand eternities, so anything you may need of me, I will be happy to provide."

Steve smiled slyly.

* * *

The testificates looked over the horizon and saw a sea of black figures. The warriors of the village were at the ready, until they heard Steve shouting.

"Put down your weapons! Put them down!"

Upon further inspection, it was seen that every one of the black figures held a bucket, brimming with water. Another wave came in bearing various fruits and grains, and still another brought a multitude of different breeds of saplings. Steve walked up to the bishop as the Endermen began filling the well and planting crops.

"So, bishop, how does this fair?"

The bishop's jaw was locked in place, gapping wide open.

"Yeah, I figured that would be your reaction," Steve chuckled.


	11. Chapter 11: In the Nether

"Okay," Steve thought to himself, "according to these books, the ancients used to use obsidian in order to get into the Nether Realm. Their notebooks suggested giant, ghost-like creatures; rotting, bipedal pigs…?; and a flaming monster which drew rods of fire close to its body for protection. They called these monsters…Blazes."

Steve put the library book back upon its shelf and walked out of the library. He went back to the house that the Testificates had given to him, and grabbed his diamond pickaxe and a bucket of water.

He found the hole that he had previously been mining in and went to the lava room. Steve dunked all the water from the bucket onto the lava, and it sizzled away. When the steam had cleared, Steve noticed a dark purple block beneath him. He immediately began to pick away at the obsidian.

Having done his homework on the subject, Steve remembered that the ancients made their portals with only 10 blocks of obsidian. Once he had all the necessary blocks, he made his way back up to the Testificate village.

Steve went to the bishop and began to explain his conquest.

"OH NONNONONONONONONO! ABSOLUTELY NOT, MY FRIEND!" the bishop shouted at Steve.

"Um…I kinda…need to. Can I build it anywhere else?"

"Well, to the south of the desert, there are some mountainous regions. There aren't a lot of living creatures over there, so it would be the perfect place to do this."

"Okay, thank you bishop."

"BE WARNED FRIEND: this is not a task you should take lightly. One does not simply enter The Nether willy nilly. You must be careful not to anger the inhabitants there, for they are hostile and greedy, and some even attack in droves."

"Bishop, you seem as though you know a great deal about this matter. How do you know so much about The Nether?" Steve questioned.

"Uh…well…I…uh…you better be on your way," the bishop said, avoiding the question. He pushed Steve along hurriedly and went back to his house, locking it behind him.

Steve simply shrugged and headed south. It was nighttime by this point, but it wasn't much trouble for Steve. As he made his way to the mountains, he killed a few skeletons and zombies along the way, and it wasn't too much trouble for him. He came to the top of a hill and laid a perimeter of torches. He then assembled the portal just as he had read it.  
"4 by 5…four on the bottom, five on the top." He assembled his portal cautiously. He then took out the flint and steel he had and lit the obsidian on fire. He saw the fire immediately take the shape of a purple, swirling vortex. Steve breathed in deeply, and stepped into the portal.

He felt as if he was being dragged through a swamp of needles and fire. All he saw as he went along his way was the world he knew swirling into a purple haze.

(Entering The Nether)

Steve once again knew the familiar feeling of being dropped on his head after being thrown off a cliff. As Steve came to, he looked around and felt the immense heat of lava around him. He saw giant stalactites of glowing substances not documented in his research. Steve felt as if he was in a dream, and saw around him new monsters for which even his research hadn't prepared him.

"Huh…they literally are rotting, bipedal pigs. And they're carrying…golden swords? I WANT ONE!" Steve said greedily. He immediately ran up to the monster and, within two strikes, had it killed. Unfortunately for Steve, its sword had been destroyed in the battle. However, upon closer inspection of the rotting pig carcass, Steve saw a glimmer of light inside of it. He stuck his hand inside the carcass, and ripped a shiny, blood-ridden gold nugget from its rib cage. As he looked at it with greed, he heard more snorting noises from behind him.

"Ohh…so that's what the bishop meant when he said 'droves'. Huh," Steve said, as he ran away, screaming like a little girl. The 12 other rotting pigs followed quickly behind him, and as Steve was running away, he came to the opening of the cave in which he was apparently spawned. He looked out and saw a vast sea of molten, scalding lava. As he looked up, he saw another monster that he had read about in his studies. It was the giant, ghostly creature known to the ancients as the Ghast.

"Hmm…if I remember correctly, the spit balls of-FIRE!" Steve exclaimed as he ducked. He heard the pigs behind him squeal in pain as he stood back up. Steve then got a sly idea.

"HEY! YOU GIANT GHOST SQUID! YOU CAN'T HIT ME!" Steve shouted, taunting the Ghast. As he did, the ghost fired another fireball at Steve. Steve quickly took out his sword, and angled it just right so that the fireball reflected off of the blade and hit the pigs like bowling pins. As the pigs died, he began to pick out more gold nuggets. Then a fireball hit him square in his bum.

"YEEEOW! HOTHOTHOTHOTHOT!" Steve shouted. As he put himself out, he remembered the trick he pulled with the pigs, and wondered if the same would work for the Ghast. So, when it fired another fireball at Steve, he angled his sword just right so that the fireball hit the Ghast. The monster immediately went up in flames, and it perished in the middle of the air. When he came to the spot under which it had died, he noticed a small droplet of what appeared to be water, yet it was cloudy and solid. He picked it up and went on his way.

As he went farther along in Hell, Steve came to a giant stronghold made out of dark red bricks. He went inside, and was immediately assaulted by a flaming monster with glowing rods encircling it.

"The Blaze," Steve said to himself. He ran up to it, and maliciously pummeled it with his sword. The blaze died within two hits.

"Huh, that was easier than I thought," Steve thought. Nevertheless, he picked up one of the rods that the Blaze dropped and began to make his way back.

When he got back to his portal, the purple vortex that he saw went out. Steve began immediately to panic. He took his flint and steel and relit the portal a hundred more times, and the only thing that he produced was fire.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

* * *

In the real world, two Endermen were outside of Steve's portal. One of them held a block of obsidian in its hand. It just so happened to be the block of obsidian that was missing from Steve's portal's frame. One of the Endermen looked into the teal sphere that it was holding, and a giant dragon was looking back into it. The Enderman nodded, and the dragon let loose a roar.


	12. Chapter 12: H E L P

"The-there's no escape. THERE'S NO ESCAPE! AHAHAHAHAHAHA! LA LA LA LA! I'M TRAPPED IN HEEEERREEE!"

Steve sat in the corner of his little netherrack cave, slowly rocking back and forth. It had been three weeks since Steve had realized that he had become trapped in the Nether, and he was starting to go mental. As a pigman walked in, Steve maliciously grabbed the pig by the lapels and began shaking it.

"YOU! I KNOW YOU KNOW I KNOW YOU KNOW I KNOW THAT YOU KNOW WHERE THE ESCAPE HATCH IS TO THIS GIANT SUBMARINE OF FIRE AND SMELLY ARMPITS! WHERE! WHERE?!"

The pigman oinked at Steve in confusion.

Steve threw the pig outside by the seat of its pants. He sat in his corner once again and started to cry. Steve's armor lay in the other corner of the dark red room, tattered and cracked to the point of breaking. His shirt was covered in sweat and rips from various monsters that he had killed, and in the corner there laid a huge stack of golden nuggets. All those nuggets, Steve knew, that were pointless to be collecting now. Steve walked back outside.

He went over to the stronghold from which he had received the rods of fire. He began to gaily frolic around the strong hold as if he wasn't even aware of his predicament. He ran past a room, not giving it a second thought. However, when he took a double-take, he realized that there was something different about this room. Steve saw a small, black chest with a glowing eye in the middle of the lid. He opened it with anticipation, only to find that the chest was empty. He screamed at the chest and slammed the lid shut. Steve then proceeded to sit in the corner and rock back and forth again, laughing manically. However, after about 45 minutes, Steve regained his composure and stood up. He looked inside the chest once again, and noticed a small brick inside of it. He took out the brick and examined it thoroughly. It smelled like freshly cut grass; that was a smell Steve hadn't known for almost a month. He quickly took out the netherrack he had in his pocket, and put it inside of the chest, vaguely spelling out the word,

"H E L P".

Steve waited for a moment, and the blocks of netherrack started disappearing one by one. Steve became extremely giddy at the thought of this contact with the outside world. Finally, FINALLY, he might have found a way out.

* * *

The bishop had finished giving his sermon that day, and began to question the other villagers about the whereabouts of Steve. The bishop hadn't given much thought to the fact that none of the villagers knew. He assumed that Steve must have gone back to his regular home in the forest.

That was when all of the villagers began to notice a thick black cloud of smoke blocking out the sun.

That also happened to be the exact moment when the villagers noticed the ginormous roar let loose.

The bishop looked up into the sky, and saw a huge dragon as dark as night coming straight at the ground. However, when the dragon made contact with it, the sand and rock around the huge beast evaporated. The earth beneath the Testificates began to shake.

"Everyone! Get inside of the houses!" The bishop shouted. As the villagers followed the command of the bishop, he glanced over and noticed a sea of black figures. This time, however, they did not look friendly. The bishop ran into the woods to a secret bunker of which only he knew the whereabouts. He ran inside and slammed the door behind him. He grimaced at the sound of the thundering roar let out by the dragon. The bishop went down his ladder into his bunker, where inside was a glowing purple portal, along with a black chest. The bishop began to empty his pockets into the chest. However, when he placed the first brick in there, he saw that it mysteriously vanished. The bishop quizzically looked into the chest, and then saw bricks of red start to surface.

"H E L P"

The bishop quickly ran inside his portal. Just as he did, he heard another roar let loose by the dragon.


	13. Chapter 13: Leaving the Nether

Steve lay huddled in the corner of the room with the black chest. He spent almost an hour just yelling at a pigman that had walked in about how it needed to get a job in order to provide for itself. Meanwhile, the bishop ran as fast as he could to get to the stronghold in order to retrieve Steve. He heard Steve's screaming from a good distance away.

"AND IF YOU DON'T START MAKING MONEY SOON, I'M GONNA HAVE TO RIP IT OUT OF YOU!" Steve shouted insanely. Just as he finished, the bishop ran in to the room.

"BISHOP! GREAT TIMING! Do you have any flowers? I need them to make my house look boo-tiful! AH HAHAHAHAHA!"

The bishop walked up to Steve, slapped him in the face, and immediately began to shake him.

"Get a hold of yourself man!" the bishop shouted.

Steve shook his head wildly from the force of the hand across his face, and then began to calm down. Once he did, he hugged the bishop and began to cry.

"Thank you bishop…I didn't know when I might see the light of day again!" Steve sobbed.

"It is alright my friend, but we have to go now. Our village is being ravaged by a tremendous dragon!"

The bishop led the way back to his portal and brought Steve along with him. They both stepped into the portal.

(Leaving The Nether)

Steve immediately flung himself from the bunker to the grass outside, and began to spread his arms and legs all around it, gleefully singing and smiling. The bishop stared at Steve with a look of annoyance.

"Are you about done?" the bishop asked impatiently.

"One more minute," Steve said, taking in a long breath of air, "mmmmMMMMMMMM-AHHHHhhhhhh… okay. Now I'm done. So where's this dragon?"

Steve and the bishop ran back to the village as fast as they could. However, when they arrived, they found the village suspended in midair with a huge pit underneath of it. Steve made an abrupt halt, nearly falling into the hole.

"In Notch's name! What happened? Anyone?" the bishop cried, but there was no response.

The village was silent. The Testificates inside the houses were too terrified to even speak to one of their own. Steve then got an idea.

"Bishop, I need you to take these bricks of netherrack and start laying them across this hole. I discovered that this netherrack has a tendency to stick to itself and hold its structure."

As the bishop and Steve laid down the red blocks to provide some solid ground for the Testificates, they slowly began to come out of their houses. Once they were done, the Testificates began to explain what had happened all at once. Steve and the bishop were overwhelmed.

"Whoa whoa whoa, my Testificates. Calm yourselves, for there is no need to be fearful at this moment. One person, please come forward and explain to me what happened.

Ms. Testificate stepped forward and hurriedly explained the situation.

* * *

The sky turned dark red as the dragon came over the horizon once again. All of the villagers watched in horror as the dragon began to slice clean through the landscape, making quick work of the foundations that they had laid for their basic survival. The dragon passed straight underneath of the village, barely missing the cobblestone floors of the houses above it. As the Testificates cowered in terror at the sight of the dragon, they heard the Endermen marching past the village. Then, just as soon as it had started, it was over, and the damage was irreversible. The last thing that any of the villagers saw was the dragon go straight into the air, and then take a nose dive straight down into the earth, with its army of Endermen following it.

* * *

As Steve heard Ms. Testificate finish her story, he found a new confidence within himself. He needed to destroy this monster. He knew it wouldn't be easy, but he also knew that it was possible. Steve ran after the hole he had fell into when he went to search for the spring. However, he came to it to find not the small, bone-ridden hole he had climbed out of, but a gargantuan hole the size of a dragon. He saw a small black figure on the bottom, wearing a gold helmet.

"No."


	14. Chapter 14: The Ender King's Farewell

Steve made his way down to the Ender King. The king looked as if he was slipping out of consciousness, and there was nothing Steve could do to try and save him. As the king's eyes turned from a bright purple to a dull grey, a piece of paper materialized in his hand. Steve picked up the piece of paper and read it to himself:

* * *

"Dear Steve,

By now, you understand the great tragedy which has befallen me, and you now know that I am unfit to carry on in this realm. I ask that you do not mourn my death, but avenge me and all of my people. For the sake of all Ender kind, you must defeat that monster! I have left a great treasure for you, and it is hidden somewhere that you can only reach with my last ender pearls. I bid you kind farewell, and wish you the greatest of fortune on your quest.

Fare thee well,

The Ender King"

* * *

Steve looked in the Ender King's helmet, and saw 2 shiny teal pearls on his head. He quickly ran into his throne room and triggered a tripwire, opening a piston door with a dark, giant chasm on the other side. Steve could just barely make out the figure of a small chest on the other side, and with all of his might, Steve chucked one of the pearls to the other side. Steve opened up the chest, and found inside of it a full suit of diamond armor, a diamond sword, a bow, and almost 500 arrows, along with various golden apples and other treasures.

"This is just what I needed," Steve said to himself as he gazed over the treasure which lay before him. "Thank you, Ender King. Your sacrifice shall not go without vengeance."

* * *

As he made his way back to the village, Steve heard a roar from the dragon, and then a large "WOOSH!" When Steve arrived at the village, he found the testificates waiting for him.

"Here you are, my friend," the bishop said, handing Steve numerous amounts of what appeared to be glowing eyes. "These will help you to find the portal to The End."

"Bishop, I cannot thank you enough for all that you have done for me. I wish that there was more that I could do for you-"

"It is perfectly fine, my friend," the bishop said, cutting off Steve, "you have done more than enough of your fair share around here. We, the Testificates, have accepted you into our society, and you have proven to be our most valuable asset that we could not even ask Notch for, and for this, we are truly grateful. However," the bishop's expression turned dark, "you have a very grave undertaking ahead of you, my friend. You must now go and defeat this horrid beast, without the aid of anyone in the village or any of the king's men. Are you sure you are prepared for this?"

Steve looked at the bishop with determination and nodded.

"May Notch bless you, my friend."

Steve took one of the eyes from his pocket and tossed it into the air. The eye then started to hover in a strange direction, and Steve followed it intently, waving goodbye to the Testificates.


	15. Chapter 15: Redstone Puzzles are Fun!

As night fell, Steve made a fire while en route to the The End. The monsters avoided Steve, as if in respect for his conquest. Except, of course, for one brave creeper, which came up directly behind Steve.

"SSSSSsssssSSSSS"

Steve nonchalantly pulled his sword out and sliced clean through the creeper. As he pulled his blade out of the creeper's freshly dead corpse, he shouted around him.

"Let that be a warning to all of you."

Steve continued his quest the next morning, where he followed his eye into a fortress made of mossy stone bricks. He descended into the fortress and, upon closer inspection, he saw a multitude of different redstone wires linked up under a thick plate of glass upon which he stood. He then saw 4 different levers, all hooked up side by side, and one lever on the adjoining wall. Steve looked at the redstone quizzically, and then started to toy around with the levers. He soon found that the adjoining lever send out a pulse to the redstone beneath him. He also figured out that the four different levers controlled four separate pistons, which each held some redstone.

"Okay…I think I can negotiate this puzzle." He started with the adjoining lever. The redstone pulse started along the wire, and just as it came to the first obstacle, Steve pulled one of the levers. The block on the piston came up and continued the pulse along the circuit. He did this in a sequential order, and eventually, the redstone pulse disappeared through the wall. A piston door opened to reveal a blocked off room. Steve became frustrated, and started to pick away at the wall. He noticed that it was surprisingly soft, and out popped a hostile grey bug. Steve was taken aback, but upon further inspection, he heard a strange noise coming from the other side of the wall. He picked through it to realize that he had found the portal to The End. Without hesitation, Steve immediately jumped into it.

(Entering The End)


	16. Chapter 16: FOR THE ENDER KING!

_[Author's Note: Thanks for over 1000 views! Please remember to comment on the story, for it is the only way I get any better at writing it.]_

Steve found that this portal did not leave him feeling as if he had just gone through the 7 gates of Hell. However, his bliss was short lived.

Steve found himself spawned upon a ground made of a silky-yellow, clay-like substance. He looked into the sky to see what can only be described as static. As Steve looked around him, he saw enormous pillars of obsidian, with strange, diamond-shaped structures resting on them. A thick, stale odor permeated the air, and Steve felt as if he was about to puke, not only from the smell, but from his nervousness as well.

An ear-shattering roar was let loose from the dragon rampaging through the sky. Steve looked to the source of the roar and found some Endermen trying to fight the dragon. Steve immediately ran to join them, but just as he did, the dragon swooped under the opposing Endermen and took out the blocks upon which the stood. Steve looked down at the falling Endermen and saw nothing but blackness through the giant hole in the world.

The dragon perched upon one of the pillars and began to draw energy from the diamond structure. As it did, Steve recognized the wounds that the opposing Endermen had tried to deal to the beast heal themselves. Steve could only watch in awe, up until one brave Enderman came and conked Steve on his diamond helmet. Steve, being too quick for the Enderman to teleport away, grabbed it by the throat, and drove his diamond sword straight up into the Enderman's abdomen. The other Endermen slowly backed away, and as Steve wondered why they did so, he realized that those Endermen had been put there to stall Steve while the dragon was healing itself. Once the dragon had healed itself, it let out another vicarious roar.

"Hmm…if I am to take out this dragon, I need to destroy its sources of power," Steve said to himself. He began to make his way to the top of one of the pillars of obsidian. When he made it, the dragon tried to swoop down and harm Steve. Steve missed the underside of the dragon by an inch, and smelled the pungent odor of dragon sweat as it passed by his face. Steve immediately got back up and began to pick away at the diamond structure. The structure took no time to destroy; however, when he had destroyed it, the structure exploded, and Steve was knocked to his feet. Steve contemplated for a brief second as the dragon gained energy from a different pillar. As Steve pulled his bow out, the dragon turned around and began to head towards Steve once more.

"This is gonna be close!" Steve exclaimed, as he let an arrow fly off of his bowstring. The arrow struck a diamond structure on a nearby pillar and destroyed it. Just as the arrow struck the pillar, the dragon also happened to be passing by. When the diamond structure exploded, the dragon let out a cry of pain, and immediately turned the opposite direction. Steve did a fist pump in celebration, which was short lived as the dragon turned around once again and came right at Steve.

Steve tried to pull the same stunt with the other surrounding pillars, but to no avail as the dragon came by and knocked Steve right off of the pillar upon which he was standing. Steve hit the ground with a solid thud, realizing that the ground was not as soft as his feet told him it was. Steve recovered quickly and began to take out the other pillars one by one, firing arrows at each one. He looked around for the next pillar and realized that there were no more diamond structures on the pillars.

This made the dragon extremely angry. The dragon began to swoop down at Steve face first, with mounted force. Steve found this to be a silly move, and as he readied an arrow on his bow, he was knocked to his feet by an Enderman behind him. The Enderman, in doing so, had helped Steve to avoid the dragon, and once again it passed right over Steve's head. Steve, seeing no other option, decided to run to an area with the fewest amount of Endermen and try to battle the dragon there. The dragon began to repeat the same move, and this time, Steve readied his sword. When the dragon was almost a foot from him, Steve made a monumental jump into the air and landed straight on the dragons back as it moved forward. Steve struggled to hold on as he held his blade in one hand and a scale from the dragon in the other. He slowly made his way up to the neck, where Steve managed to strike the dragon right in the throat. The dragon cried in pain and knocked Steve off onto a pillar.

"Hmm…well, no Endermen at least," Steve thought to himself as he readied another arrow. The dragon began to come at Steve, and just as it did, Steve fired an arrow straight at its face. He could tell that the dragon was getting sloppy and tired, and figured that one good blow to the head should do it. So, when the dragon once more came to Steve, he jumped on it again and made his way to the head. He turned his blade to face the top of the dragon and shouted.

"FOR THE ENDER KING!"

Steve drove his diamond blade straight into the skull of the giant beast. As he did, he could feel himself falling. Time seemed to slow down in that moment. As Steve fell, he saw the dragon begin to disintegrate above him, and a bright light filled the entire dimension. The surrounding Endermen began to run away from the huge light. Steve continued to fall, seeing his diamond sword in the air next to him.

Steve landed face first on the ground. When he looked up, he saw his sword jettisoned out of the ground next to him, and a huge portal next to it. Steve got up and pulled his sword out of the ground, and with one leg on the portal's frame, stood triumphantly, his sword held in the air above him.

Steve noticed a peculiar looking egg on the top of the portal. Nonchalantly, he picked up and carried it with him through the portal.

(Leaving The End)


	17. Chapter 17: Homecoming

Steve heard a voice in his head. He didn't know who it was, or from where it was coming. Yet, somehow, he felt at ease. He felt that all was right with the world. He felt at peace.

* * *

"…"

"…"  
"..!"

Steve awoke with a sudden jolt. He was in his bed back at the Testificate village. Had it all been a dream? No, he still had his diamond armor. So what happened? Steve walked outside.

"Where is everyone?" Steve wondered aloud. A tiny childrificate, almost a toddler, crawled on by. Steve picked him up. "Hey there little fella. Where's your mommy and daddy?"

The childrificate cooed softly, and pointed towards the church.

When Steve walked in, he nearly dropped the young child. He was taken by surprise by all of the villagers inside of the church, who had thrown him a surprise party. Steve returned the little childrificate to its parents, and walked up to the bishop.

"Bishop, what's all this for?"

"For everything you have done for us, my friend. We all felt the need to honor you. So, we are celebrating you and all of your brave sacrifices."

Steve still didn't quite remember if it had all been a dream, and he didn't very much care. He partied late into the night with the Testificates.

The next morning, Steve packed up his things and went to the church to wish the Testificates goodbye.

"Well bishop, it's time for me to move on. I need to go back to my own home, and tend to my farm some more."

"I understand, my friend. Come back any time you wish."

With those last words, Steve began to walk towards the forest. However, a little while after he had left sight of the village, a childrificate came running after Steve.

"WAIT! Mr. Steve! WAIT!" the small child shouted.

"What is it?"

"You-pant pant- you left this in the village"

The child handed Steve a small, black egg. Steve looked at the child and nodded, and then looked down at the egg.

So it hadn't been a dream.


	18. Chapter 18: The Figure in the Mist

Steve woke up from his bed one bright morning. The egg that he had received from the dragon was placed in a large glass display case in the side of his house. Steve went outside.  
It had been almost a month since Steve had last seen the Testificates. He had slowly been building up from his small cobblestone house into what was now a luxurious, three story manor made entirely out of stone bricks. Steve went out to tend to his wheat fields and his cow farm, which were almost substantial enough to feed Steve for a solid year. Steve looked up from the dirt he was tilling, and saw a strange, blurry figure far off in the distance. Steve squinted to try and see it, but as he did, the figure disappeared. Steve put down his hoe and started to run towards the hills.

"Hello?" Steve shouted. There was no response.

Steve began to run faster and faster as the scene became foggy. His breathing became short and shallow, and just as Steve stopped to catch his breath, he was knocked to his feet and blacked out.


	19. Chapter 19: Your Warning

"Wake up, Steve…"

"Wake uuupp…"

SMACK!

Steve was jolted awake by the force of the hand across his face. He could feel his hands bound above him in chains. Steve immediately began to hopelessly try to wiggle free.  
"Hahaha…there is no escaping those chains. I should know. I crafted them," the voice in front of him said. Steve was blindfolded, and he couldn't quite place a face to the voice in front of him. Steve tried to scream, but when he did he found that no sound came out. He realized that his mouth was also gagged by a fair amount of cloth.

"Now, I want to know something, Steve. I want to know something that I know only you know. You don't know you know it, but when you do, you're going to tell me. So, I'm going to give you this warning; we are watching you, Steve. We know of everything you have done, and we are not amused. If you don't tell us what you know in time, we are going to have to kill you."  
Steve tried to shout "I don't know anything!" but the closest sound which came out was muffled by the rag in his mouth.

"Remember, we're watching you."

Steve blacked out again.

* * *

Steve woke up in his bed with a massive headache. As he wondered what had happened that night, he checked his person to find that his map was gone. He thought it strange that the bandits who had captured him would go to so much trouble for a map.

"Maybe it was a dream?" Steve wondered as he began to search his house for the map. He came to the room his egg was in, and found that the egg was gone! Steve immediately headed towards the desert towards the Testificate village.

When he got to the village, it looked like something out of a horror film. Thick pools of blood covered the grounds around him, and as Steve walked towards the church, he found a blood stained note with the words,

"WHY STEVE?"


	20. Chapter 20: Guilt Stricken

Steve looked in complete dismay at the note he held in his hand. The Testificates in the village had all been maliciously slaughtered, and Steve hadn't been there to help them. Steve fell to his knees in front of the church and began to sob.  
"Why…" Steve softly said to himself. A rush of guilt overtook Steve. It was his fault. If he had been there to protect them from whatever did this, then the Testificates might have survived. A whole entire village was maliciously murdered, and it was all because of Steve.

Steve slowly got up and began to walk back to his house, his head hung in shame. As he approached his domicile, however, he smelled something strange…smoke? Smoke. Smoke?! SMOKE!

Steve looked up from the ground. His wheat fields, his cow farm, and his house were all being consumed by flames. Steve could only watch in horror as all of the things that he had worked to build went up in smoke. Out of nowhere, it was all gone, and Steve could feel himself falling. A piston trap had opened up beneath Steve.

* * *

Steve fell flat on his face. He got up and was immediately knocked back down. When Steve came to, he was once again bound in chains. He heard a figure laughing. He wasn't blindfolded, but it was still hard to see in the darkness that surrounded Steve.

The figure spoke through chuckles, "Ha ha ha! You players are soooo predictable!" The figure was extremely sadistic in its tone. "I just knew that you would go running back to your precious, little bishop, and he would sprinkle his magical fairy dust all over you and make things better. But that didn't happen this time, did it?! HAHAHAHAHA!"

"Why did you have to kill them all?" Steve shouted.

"Oh, it was quite simple really… so that you don't have any more reason to live. If you lose your will to carry on, then getting the information I want from you should be very easy."

"I already tried to tell you, I don't know anything!"

"LIAR!" the figure said in a demonic voice. "You know everything! It's all in your head. I know it is. So why don't you make it easier on yourself and TELL ME!?"

"Tell you what? What do you want from me?"

"You know the secret to immortality," the figure said matter-of-factly. Steve was flabbergasted at this accusation. "Oh yes, it is true. I know you know it. _You _just don't know you know it. So, until you decide to dig around in the back of your square little head for that tidbit of information I need, you can stay in here and rot. Goodbye, Steve."

Steve heard a large door slam shut. The resonance from the door shattered the chain on the ceiling, and Steve fell to the ground.


	21. Chapter 21: Escaping

Steve looked around for something that he could use to break his shackles. He dug around in his pockets, and thankfully, pulled out enough wood to form a crafting table. As he dug around more, he found a few bits of stone lying around his cell, and before too long, Steve had a stone sword. He propped the sword up against the wall and sawed through the shackles until he was free. Steve searched his person and found that he still had all of his armor on, along with his bow, yet sadly, only 2 arrows. Steve looked up and saw that his cell door had a lock on the inside of the door. He took out one of the arrows and began to pick the lock carefully. Just as he heard the tumblers click open, the arrow snapped in half, and left Steve with nothing but a stone sword and one arrow to defend him.

As he slowly opened the door, Steve noticed that he was in some sort of long corridor with torches dimly lighting the way along it. As he traveled through the hallway, he began to hear strange noises. Moving further along, the noises began to grow bigger. But…what were they? They didn't sound like skeletons, or zombies. Steve turned around to look the opposite direction, and just as he did, he heard the most awful sound a player can hear.

"SSSSSsssssSSSS"

BOOM!

Steve was thrown to the ground in the opposite direction by the force of the creeper explosion, but figured out from where the noises were coming. Steve looked down into the hole made by the creeper and saw a massive cage. Inside of the cage were all of the Testificate villagers.


	22. Chapter 22: The Bishop's Son

"Oh thank Notch you are all alive! What on earth happened?" Steve exclaimed.

The bishop stepped forward from the crowded cage. He began to speak in a sullen tone.  
"My friend, I think it is time that you know the whole story. My only hope is that you forgive me for hiding the truth from you for so long."

* * *

Testificate Jr. approached his dad, excited for the journey ahead. His dad was very nervous to let his only son go on such a dangerous journey, but as the father saw the brightness in his son's eyes, his mind was put at ease.

"Dad, I'm ready. I will go and bring back water for the village. I will not let you down," Jr. said energetically.

"I know, son, I know. Just be careful…there are a lot of dangers we don't know about yet."

"I will, Dad. I love you"

"I love you too, son."

Jr. went to go find his girlfriend so he could give her one last kiss before his big journey.

About a month passed, and Jr. and his search party hadn't returned. Jr.'s father was becoming frantic, and at that point, he couldn't take it anymore. He and some other Testificates went out on the same path that his son had been following a month prior. Jr.'s father became more and more obsessed with finding his son to the point where he began to run ahead of the group. The others shouted to him as he ran faster and faster, and eventually Jr.'s father came to a giant chasm. Hanging from the side of the chasm there was a crumpled piece of paper. Jr.'s father picked it up and saw that it was the map they had been following. He immediately began to run back towards the others, with tears in his eyes.

Jr.'s father fell into a long, unrelenting depression. Suicide seemed like the only option, the only escape. Jr.'s father pulled out a sword from his large chest. Just as he was about to drive it into his heart, he heard a voice call to him.

"What are you doing?"

Jr.'s father was immediately shocked by the sound of the voice, and the blade flew out of his hand. His heart racing, Jr.'s father said, "Who…who are you?"

The voice calmly said, "I am a man who is down on his luck, too. We are kindred spirits, you and I. We both want something that we so desperately crave, we are willing to kill to get it back…even if that means killing yourself."

"How-how do you know all this?" Jr.'s father replied, his voice quivering.

"Oh, I've been around the world a couple of times…you have that look in your eyes. The look of a man who has lost everything."

"…well, yes," Jr.'s father began, "I lost my only son due to my carelessness. I should have gone with him."

The voice softly replied, "Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that. No one should have to outlive their own child. Oh fate, ye can be a cruel mistress…" the voice then changed its tone, "…but…what if I told you that there was a way to get your son back?"

Jr.'s father looked up in surprise. "Really?" he said, "how can I do that?"

"Well," the voice began, "you need to do something for me first. You see, the thing that I have lost is my immortality. However, I already know who it is that is going to find what I have lost. All you have to do is promise me you'll lead me to him when I come to call. You do that, and I will give you back your son."

Jr.'s father looked bewildered, but seeing no inherent harm in doing such a thing, he quickly replied, "okay, I promise."

The voice began to laugh as it faded away. As soon as Jr.'s father could no longer hear the voice, a loud banging came at his door. Jr.'s father ran to it and was ready to welcome his son back in with open arms. When he opened the door, however, a rotting corpse stood before him and began to attack Jr.'s father. Frightened by the unexpected houseguest, he quickly grabbed the sword and drove it through the zombie. When he looked closer at the face of the zombie, it seemed, if only for an instant, that he saw his son's face. Just as he did, the zombie disintegrated and blew away with the wind. The bishop lay down and began to sob.

About 4 months later, the same voice came back to the bishop's house. When he asked of Steve's whereabouts, the bishop sternly replied, "No. You are an evil man, and I will tell you nothing."

"I'm sorry to hear that, but we had a deal. You wanted your son back-"

"You didn't tell me he would still be dead!" the bishop screamed.

"You didn't ask. Now you must pay the price of your own foolishness. Tell me where Steve is!"

"Never! I would rather be caged like an animal than help the likes of you!"

"Very well."

The bishop began to hear pistons open all over the village. One by one, he saw villagers drop from their houses. The bishop could only look in shock.

"Now…do you wish to reconsider?"

The bishop closed his eyes and hung his head. He slowly raised his arm and pointed towards the forest. As soon as he did, the voice began to laugh as the bishop fell into another piston trap. As he fell, the last thing he saw was a man standing over the hole. A man with bright white, lifeless eyes.


	23. Chapter 23: Dancing with the Devil

_[Author's Note: Thanks to everyone for over 2,000 views! I really enjoy writing this story. Please continue to leave comments, and favorite the story for updates on chapters!]_

"Oh Notch," Steve said in bewilderment. He almost couldn't believe what he was hearing. "So you're telling me that you made a deal with the devil?"

"I am afraid so, my friend. I made a terrible mistake, and now I have paid the price. I apologize for revealing you to that satanic man."

"It's alright, bishop. Any man that has suffered what you've suffered would do the same thing," Steve said with regret. He tried to pick the lock on the cage with his remaining arrow. Right before the final tumbler was clicking, Steve heard the bishop shout.

"Look out!"

Steve turned around sharply.

There stood a man in a blue shirt and jeans. He had brown hair, and a very flat nose. He looked like a regular man in every way. Except for his eyes. His eyes, even though they were bright white, were filled with darkness and evil. His eyes almost felt as if they could stare right into Steve's soul.

Steve immediately pulled out his sword and thrust it through the evil being's chest. The evil man simply looked down at the sword and laughed as Steve witnessed his sword turn dark black and absorb into the evil man. Steve's sword then materialized into the evil man's hand. Just as Steve was about to start running, he was knocked on the head by the evil man and blacked out.


	24. Chapter 24: It Dreamed of Shelter

_What did this player dream? _

_This player dreamed of sunlight and trees. Of fire and water. It dreamed it created. And it dreamed it destroyed. It dreamed it hunted, and was hunted. It dreamed of shelter._

* * *

"NOOO!"

Steve sat up in his bed. He checked his person quickly to see if he still had his things. He looked and saw his bow and his two arrows, along with some wood. Steve breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

"It was all a dream…"

Steve got up and went outside. Something was different. He looked and saw his wheat fields, as vast and plentiful as they were, and yet saw his cow farm with only 3 cows and one calf. He took a close look at his house and saw that it was nothing more than a small wooden shack. Steve didn't know exactly what was going on, but he intended to find out.

He went into the desert towards the Testificate village. When he arrived, the villagers paid him very little attention. Steve figured that they might all have been having a bad day, considering everything that had happened recently. He went into the church.  
"Nay, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no Creepers, for I know that Notch be with me. Amen." A chorus of "amen"s were heard by the villagers as they all got up and left the church. Steve walked up to the bishop.

"Bishop, something strange has been happening," Steve said with concern. The bishop seemed to have a blank expression on his face, and looked at Steve quizzically.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" the bishop questioned.

"Bishop? It's me, Steve. How do you not know that? We've known each other for almost 4 months."

"I'm sorry, but I have never known anyone with such a strange name as 'Steve". Everyone in the village is named 'Testificate'. There's Tesmithicate, Dr. Testificate, Ms. Testificate, Testificook, Tometificate our librarian, and I, Tesbishopcate."

Steve had let his mind wander a little as the bishop named off all of the villagers. He snapped back when he got an idea. "Okay bishop, if I've never met you before, how do I know that you lost your son?"

The bishop's expression suddenly turned sour. "I don't know how you knew that, but I think you should leave now. None shall blaspheme in the house of Notch."

"Wait! Bishop!" Steve was being pushed out of the church, and as he was pushed out the door, he felt himself falling.


	25. Chapter 25: Infinite Falling

_Does it know that we love it? That the universe is kind?  
Sometimes, through the noise of its thoughts, it hears the universe, yes.  
But there are times it is sad, in the long dream. It creates worlds that have no summer, and it shivers under a black sun, and it takes its sad creation for reality.  
To cure it of sorrow would destroy it. The sorrow is part of its own private task. We cannot interfere._

* * *

Steve only knew the feeling of falling. He was falling into The End, and as he fell, he saw the Endermen which had fallen through the hole the dragon had made. As he fell, he caught glimpses of the diamond structures atop the pillars of obsidian. He saw the dragon drawing power from them, and was fearful once more. As quickly as he caught the glimpses of these images, Steve fell deeper.

Steve only knew the feeling of falling. He was falling into The Nether, and as he fell, he heard the laughter of a madman. It was his own laughter, and as Steve fell, he saw the stronghold in which the black chest was hidden. As Steve fell, he saw the portal he had so carefully constructed extinguish itself, and was melancholy and maniacal once more. As quickly as he caught glimpses of these images, Steve fell deeper.

Steve only knew the feeling of falling. He was falling into the village, and as he fell, he saw the shimmering pools of maroon which lay all over town. He caught minor glimpses of the bloodied note he held in his hand. He saw his own grief, and was grief-stricken once more. As quickly as he caught glimpses of these images, Steve fell deeper.

Steve only knew the feeling of falling. He was falling in front of his house, except this time, he came to an abrupt halt when he made contact with the ground. Steve stood up, his bones aching from the fall, and saw his house once again set ablaze. All of the things he had worked for, gone. All of the things he had created vanished. All of his efforts, wasted. And as he caught his last glimpse of this image, Steve saw darkness all around him.


	26. Chapter 26: Lost in a Story

_Sometimes the player dreamed it was lost in a story. _

_Sometimes the player dreamed it was other things, in other places. Sometimes these dreams were disturbing. Sometimes very beautiful indeed. Sometimes the player woke from one dream into another, then woke from that into a third._

* * *

"Hello?"

Steve's voice echoed through the infinite blackness around him. He saw in the distance what looked like balls of light. What were they? He walked up to one and saw himself with all of the Testificates, throwing the party in the church. Another ball of light revealed him holding the Ender King's head in his hands. Steve then looked into another ball of light and saw himself in a stone room, lying on the floor. Was he sleeping? Steve couldn't tell.

* * *

"STEVE! STEVE MY FRIEND, WAKE UP! PLEASE!"

Steve lay on the floor, a pool of blood surrounding him. The evil man simply stood in front of him, smiling menacingly.

"Ah well, 'tis a shame," he said between his grin. "He held the secret to what I wanted to know. But it doesn't matter. There will be other players. There will be other chances."

"You are a monster!" the bishop shouted behind the bars of his cage.

"Me?" the evil man said with mounted sarcasm, "Oh no, I am not the monster. I am not the one who constantly seeks out the things he so greedily desires, be it money, power, or a lost one." The bishop's face turned dark at that comment. "I simply wish to have once again what was rightfully mine in the first place," the evil man stated.

The bishop held back a tear in his eye as he looked at Steve, still lying in a pool of blood on the cold, stone floor.


	27. Chapter 27: Herobrine

_Sometimes the player dreamed it was a miner, on the surface of a world that was flat, and infinite. The sun was a square of white. The days were short; there was much to do; and death was a temporary inconvenience…_

_And the universe said I love you _

_And the universe said you have played the game well _

_And the universe said everything you need is within you _

_And the universe said you are stronger than you know _

_And the universe said you are the daylight _

_And the universe said you are the night _

_And the universe said the darkness you fight is within you _

_And the universe said the light you seek is within you _

_And the universe said you are not alone _

_And the universe said you are not separate from every other thing _

_And the universe said I love you because you are love. _

_And the game was over and the player woke up from the dream. And the player began a new dream. And the player dreamed again, dreamed better. And the player was the universe. And the player was love. _

_You are the player. _

_Wake up._

"…wake up."

"…wake up."

Steve lay in his bed. He continually murmured to himself in his sleep.

"…wake up."

Steve slowly opened up his eyes. He sat up in his regular bed, in his regular manor. He looked outside. He heard his myriad of cows mooing away happily.

Steve felt…enlightened. He felt as if the weight of the world had finally been lifted from his shoulders. He began to search on him for his things, but found that he had none of his prior belongings. However, Steve didn't think much of it. He simply walked over to his chest and pulled out his diamond sword and his diamond armor.

Steve walked into the corridor again. He almost felt as if he was in a dream. Only this time, the consequences were far direr than he could have ever imagined. He found the hole that the creeper had blown in the floor. Steve descended into it.

Steve slowly stood up from the ground. As he looked at the evil man, he simply said one word.

"Herobrine."  
The evil man seemed as if he was afraid for a split second, right before he vanished out of thin air. Steve quickly looked behind him and without an expression on his face, turned and unlocked the door to the Testificates' cage. Every one of the Testificates looked at Steve with a look of shock. Every one, except for the bishop. The bishop walked up to Steve.

"You heard them. You heard them speak to you of greater things. You heard the truth."

"Yes, I did," Steve said, still expressionless.

"You understand now that he is going to be looking for you?"

"Oh no, bishop," Steve said, "_I'm _going to look for _him._"


	28. Chapter 28: The Epic Battle, Pt 1

Steve and the Testificates found the exit to the dungeon after searching for a good couple of hours. When they got out, Steve addressed the village.  
"All of you stay inside of your houses. Do not come out for any reason. This is probably going to get messy."

The Testificates obeyed, and they all went back to the village. Steve looked up in the sky and began to shout.

"HEROBRINE! I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME!"

Silence.

A strange mist began to surround Steve. He heard sadistic laughing through the haze, followed by what looked like a ginormous head coming straight at him through the fog.

"Oh no," Steve said with defiance. He pulled out his diamond sword and held it in the air. The blade sliced clean through the head, and revealed that it was simply an illusion.

"HEROBRINE! Your tricks don't work on me anymore!" Steve shouted. As he did, Herobrine came down on a cloud of mist, lying on his side with his head propped up by his arm. He seemed as if he _wanted_ Steve to come and find him. He began to laugh.

"Hahahahaha! Didn't I tell you that you would know what I wanted to know eventually? Now, just tell me what I want to hear, and I might consider not utterly destroying you."

"It doesn't matter if I tell you or not," Steve began, "You have been corrupted. You will never know the true secret to immortality, because you are the embodiment of evil. You are the devil. You do not deserve to live forever."

Herobrine turned extremely angry and began to yell at Steve. "DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YOU, YOU FOOL!" As Herobrine said his last comment, Steve began to see numerous amounts of enemies appear through the fog. There must have been at least fifty of each kind of enemy; creepers, skeletons, zombies, spiders, skeletons on spiders, and Endermen. However, Steve looked closer and saw that the Endermen were attacking the other monsters! With that in mind, Steve began to advance towards one of the spiders.

* * *

"Dance for me puppet. _Dance._" Herobrine descended upon the Testificate village.

* * *

Steve let out a war cry as he sliced clean through the head of a spider. The skeleton on top of it fell off and shattered to pieces. As Steve looked up and heard a sizzle behind him.

"SSSSSsssssSSSS"  
Steve grabbed the primed creeper and chucked it as far as he could into the sea of enemies.

BOOM!

Steve smirked as he saw a bunch of zombies and skeletons fly into the air from the force of the explosion. However, his joy was short lived, as six more creepers came and surrounded Steve. They all ignited at once.  
"SSSSSSSSSSSSSS"

Steve held out his sword and did a huge 360 degree spin. When he did, all of the heads of the creepers slid straight off of their bodies. Steve then pulled out his flint and steel and ignited all of the creepers again and kicked them into the crowd of skeletons and zombies. As they all exploded, he saw rotten limbs and bones scatter about. The zombies and skeletons all lay on the ground, either defeated or dismantled. Steve took a second to admire his handiwork. With all of the enemies defeated, he turned around and heard a creeper.

"SSSSSSssssssSSSS"

"Notch dam-"

BOOM!

Steve was knocked to his feet. He wasn't too badly hurt, and as he stood up, he looked around again for any more monsters that might want to sneak up on him. When he saw that there were none, he began to run back to the Testificate village.


	29. Chapter 29: Prelude to Battle

_[Author's Note: WHOA! Almost 3000 views! I love writing this story, and I'm really glad that you guys love reading it. Be prepared for the epic chapter coming up after this one! Don't forget to review and favorite to get all the updates on Steve's epic adventure!]_

* * *

_Too strong for this dream. To tell them how to live is to prevent them living._

* * *

Steve ran back to the village as fast as he could. When he arrived, he saw a huge glass pillar in the sky, connected to what looked like piston doors. He saw all of the Testificates inside of the pillar, just above the piston doors. He saw Herobrine at the top of the huge glass structure, laughing insanely.

"Come down and face me you coward!" Steve shouted.

Herobrine ceased his maniacal cackling and jumped down from the large glass pillar. When he landed, Steve felt the blocks beneath him shake.

"Coward? You honestly believe that I, the all powerful HEROBRINE, am a coward?" He began to laugh again, "You continue to amuse me so much, you pathetic little pig!"

"I know you are a coward, Herobrine. A true villain would defeat me with his bare hands, not trap a whole village to hold hostage!"

"Then true villains are all idiots," Herobrine stated. "Now, before your friends drop to their graves, I will give you one more chance to tell me: what is the secret to immortality?"

Steve looked at Herobrine for a long time. As he stood there, Steve remembered all of the words from his dreams. He spoke softly.  
"I don't know."

Herobrine looked shocked. "What do you mean you don't know?! Do you realize what is at stake here?"

Steve said again, "I don't know."

Herobrine's face turned dark. "You better tell me. I will do it!"

"Herobrine, I will tell you exactly what they told me."

Steve faintly heard the bishop shout not to tell him. Steve didn't pay the bishop any mind.

"To tell them how to live is to prevent them living," Steve simply said.

"I killed you! You were dead! And you came back! You must know! YOU MUST!"

"I cannot say. I don't know."

Herobrine looked at Steve. Steve looked at Herobrine. Herobrine began to turn dark.

"Very well…you want me to show you how cowardly I am?"

Steve readied his sword. Another sword materialized in Herobrine's hand.

Herobrine spoke defiantly, "I am so confident that I will defeat you, that I will leave myself vulnerable for the duration of our battle."

"Bring. It. On."


	30. Chapter 30: The Epic Battle, Pt 2

Steve began to charge at Herobrine, sword held in the air. Steve swung his diamond blade in a downward slash, which was met by Herobrine's sword immediately. Herobrine simply laughed and kicked Steve in the gut, knocking the wind out of him. As Steve staggered backwards, Herobrine lunged at Steve with his sword. Steve barely missed the blade slicing clean through his abdomen. Steve tried to knock Herobrine's sword out of his hand, but Herobrine just as quickly pulled it away and began lunging at Steve again. As Steve was dodging the sword left and right, he kept trying to get at least one hit in on Herobrine. As he did, however, his guard was let down, and Herobrine landed a huge slice on Steve's upper arm, leaving a huge gash in it.  
Steve yelled in pain, and Herobrine laughed again. Steve took that opportunity to perform the same move that Herobrine had just pulled, landing an even larger cut on Herobrine's leg. Herobrine was brought to his knees, and Steve came over to Herobrine. Steve turned his blade to meet Herobrine's head, and as soon as Steve was about to deliver the final blow, Herobrine caught Steve's sword with his bare hands. Steve continually put more force into the handle, and as he did, Herobrine put just as much force into his grip.

They were met with a stalemate in power. Neither was stronger than the other, and yet neither could let their guard down for even one moment. As Steve continually tried to push down on his sword, he remembered his dream…

* * *

_Sometimes the player read lines of code on a screen. Decoded them into words; decoded words into meaning; decoded meaning into feelings, emotions, theories, ideas, and the player started to breathe faster and deeper and realized it was alive, it was alive, those thousand deaths had not been real, the player was alive _

_You. You. You are alive._

* * *

Steve felt everything in the universe synchronize with him in that one instant. He experienced feelings of power that he had never felt before. Steve began to breathe faster and deeper. He realized that his death had not been real. He realized that he was alive.

"I… AM… ALIVE!"

Steve shouted his heroic words as he found more strength to finally drive the blade downwards by a small margin. The last thing Steve saw was the look of utter terror on Herobrine's face as the blade drove straight into his skull. Then a bright light filled the entire scene, and Steve felt the force of an explosion knock him back.

As Steve woke up, he went over to the spot where he had slain the evil being. He saw a small note where Herobrine's body had vanished. Steve read the note aloud.

"I will not forget this."


	31. Epilogue

And just like that, Steve's adventure had come to a conclusion. What followed afterwards can only be described as bliss. Just as Steve had heard in his dreams:

"_And the game was over and the player woke up from the dream. And the player began a new dream. And the player dreamed again, dreamed better. And the player was the universe. And the player was love."_

Steve woke up in his bed the next day. He began a new dream.


End file.
